Tuesday, June 30, 2009

I made time today to search through the Guest Designer Gallery for the July GDT. Congratulations Anna! Look for her gallery coming this week. You're going to love her ideas!

The Birthday Club email for July was sent out already. If you didn't receive it or would like to be added to the list, email us at admin@yourscrapbookstash.com or use the form on the Contact Us Page.

Pink Paislee Contest - We're giving away a LOAD of Pink Paislee goodies to two winners. Upload your layouts, cards, projects of any kind using any of Pink Paislee lines and we'll choose 2 winners on July 21st. Deadline to upload is July 20th. Make sure you upload to the Pink Paislee gallery and no other gallery. Your screen name and supply list should be included in the description. Good luck!

The next Online Shop Hop begins this week! Make sure you are registered so you receive all emails, special offers and updates. Register HERE.

And for anyone who wants some freebies, there is a giveaway on my personal blog.......

Be back tomorrow with the 3 winners from the Use Your Stash challenge and the Gallery slideshow.

Oooh! Forgot to ask how everyone likes the new Summer Playlist on the blog. If you have any good suggestions for summer songs, let me know. Email admin@yourscrapbookstash.com with the song(s) you associate with summer. Look forward to hearing your suggestions.

These 4x8 tags Erica has in the store are perfect for Mini albums. I used mine to make a small Easter mini album out of my scraps leftover from my Easter kit. It will be perfect next year as a gift for a mom or grandma or maybe I will just keep it because these little ducks are so cute on the Flower Patch line from Making Memories.

Steps to Create:1. Cut 7 pieces of cardstock or patterned paper to 7.25x4. Adhere to tags.2. Add strips of cardstock or patterned paper to each tag accordingly.3. Staple 4 inch strips of ribbon to tags.4. Add at least one sticker or Puffy sticker to each page.5. Embellish with Brads and Prima Flowers and one Butterfly clip.6. Use thickers to create a title on front7. Attach Binder clip to top of tags8. Add Ribbons to binder clip9. Add Kaiser Rhinestones to a few pages10. Enjoy or give your new book as a a gift!

Thursday, June 25, 2009

I'm definitely not old enough to remember when records had 'B' sides to them but I'm sure some of you are. Those hidden gems on the other side of the records. My parents have a ton of them and they tell me that sometimes, the 'B' sides were better than the hit recorded

on the 'A' side.

I was thinking about this the other day when I was perusing my storage area for some new products. This is the bad thing about owning your own store. You have the 7-11 of scrapbooking right there! Anyway, I was looking through papers and I couldn't find what I really wanted for a layout. If you're like me, I tend to forget which papers have a second side, or 'B' side.

So once I looked at the reverse of the papers, I was able to find exactly what I wanted!

Here's another one. Ever see the front of a paper and immediately ask yourself 'what would I do With THAT?' Me too. But check out the reverse side.

I find a lot of great background papers this way. Maybe I don't want cardstock backgrounds or I'm looking for something that matches the papers but i

sn't a big bold print...... Check the 'B' sides.

Here are just a few that I found this morning!

SEI Bridgeport and Mimosa papers are very bold on the front but the B side is a nice subtle pattern.

The new Garden Grove line from Scenic Route is full of amazing colors perfect for any occasion. I'm not a 'flower' person myself but the Houndstooth pattern on the back is begging for me to use it! See next weeks Stash Fave on 'Cutting Paper' to see how else I would use this paper.Another funky pattern on the front of the Sassafras Lass papers but the back is a nice, printed brown. It almost looks like woodgrain.Not into paisleys and swirly prints? Check out the polka dots on the B side of this Lily Bee paper!Hmmm, more paisley. Not my style but the solid red on the B side is awesome! A great alternative to trying to match the perfect cardstock.

Last one..... Unless you have a specific plan for the A side of this paper, you might really skip over it! But I've used this blue print on multiple layouts and cards.

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

If any on you are like me you have plenty of old frames laying around that you never use anymore. So dig through that stash and pull one out, preferably one that has a mat that you can alter or you can purchase a new one, and let’s get creative!

The First step is to paint your frame the color you like. Unfortunately my frame was black and I wanted it pink so it took me a few coats but it is doable. After my first few coats I added some Tim Holtz Crackle paint over top to give it a cool vintage look. Once it is all dry lightly coat the entire frame in Mod Podge to seal it.

Then take the mat and cut a piece of patterned paper the right size. Cut a hole a little smaller than the opening and adhere it to the mat with a light coat of Mod Podge. Cut diagonal slits in the corners of the picture hole in your paper.

Lightly coat the inside of the paper with Mod Podge then carefully fold over the edges sealing of your picture opening and giving you nice clean edge. Then cut a piece of cardstock a little bigger than your opening and adhere it inside the opening. After this step I completely coated my entire project in Mod Podge to seal it.

Now it is time to embellish. For mine I added a strip of ribbon about an inch from the bottom of my mat. I attached it just with my tape runner and it seemed to stick quite well. On top of that I glued a Prima flower and added a title with American Crafts Thickers. I dressed them up with a little Shimmerz paint to give them a glittery shiny look.

I then added my picture inside the picture opening and placed the mat inside the frame. I had to get rid of the glass but that was okay with me. I then wanted to add something to the upper right hand corner so I dressed up a Maya road sheer butterfly with some Shimmerz paint and Kaiser Rhinestones and Glue dotted it in place.

Friday, June 19, 2009

*** See post below for Sale information or click HERE for the Newsletter. ***

Do you have those glittery bottles of goodness laying around? Don't know how to tame them?

I finally came up with an idea that I love. It keeps them in sight of my work space and the holes unclogged.

I even printed out a list of the colors I own so I can see what I have, what it looks like dry and be able to match colors when needed.

To do this, I added little strips of velcro to the backs of the bottles and the opposite side of velcro to the side of the desk. I organized by color and then hung my list of samples up right below it. I can grab any color I need from my desk as I'm working.

Don't have a lot of Stickles yet? We just restocked a bunch of your favorite colors in the Stash store!

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Why? First, because I love my dad. He invested in this little business for me and helped get it started. Secondly, because our Scrapbooking Top 50 numbers are great! I check these every day to see where we are and it took 2 years, but we're on the edge of the Top 50! Yeah!

This is a big accomplishment. You don't get here by being an average store. And you don't get here without your customers!

And as much as I hate celebrating birthdays, I'll tell you a little secret. Sunday is my Birthday. 32 years ago, on the longest day of the year and the first day of Summer, I was born.

So, to celebrate Me, YOU and Fathers everywhere, we're having a sale!!!

Can be inked or dyed with the Maya Mists. I have a long list of things to try!

Glass Glitter. The possibilities are endless with this stuff! You get 3 oz of this chunky glass glitter. Thats 1/3 of a cup! This can also be dyed or sprayed with the Maya Mists for a cool effect. Look for some tutorials coming soon!

*** STORE IMPROVEMENTS ***

The Wishlist and Saved Cart features are now active again! We had some issues in the past with these but after several months of working with our technical team, they are fixed!!! Some of our older customers might remember our Wishlist Sales. You might want to fill that Wishlist! ;)

Friday, June 12, 2009

A few deliveries last yesterday. Took me a while to get them all loaded into the store.

First, reorder of Lily Bee Rubons and those fabulous diecut frames. You guys must love those frames - they were the first to go! And we also got our hands on the second set of rubons from the Three Little Birds line. They weren't available when we placed our first order.

Second, Elle's Studio. So excited to see her new stuff in person! Check out her blog for more great inspiration. We are the sponsor for September so there are a lot of fun things coming up soon! I had her add in a few more of the 'My Dear Stamps' since those seem to sell out quickly!

Third, American Crafts Thickers. Sadly, it took this long for them to send us the remainder of our CHA order...... But, the remainder of that order is still fun! Everyone loves Thickers!

Remember, free shipping on all orders over $30. This applies to US orders only. Also, get $5.00 in Stash Cash when your order totals $50.00 or more! With all of the new products coming out, you're going to want that Stash Cash!

Thursday, June 11, 2009

I have so many great layouts and projects to look through each mont that it gets harder all the time to pick just one person.

But this month, this lady's work jumped out at me! I loved her use of bright colors.

June Guest Designer - Lady Grace

I am LG from Manila, Philippines. I have been scrapping since October of 2008 and I am very much addicted to my new found passion. I have a Bachelors Degree in Fine Arts, I used to be a Computer Graphic Artist and an Art director at McCann-Erickon Advertising Agency.

I have found the love to scrapbook immediately after giving birth to my 1st baby girl last year. I am happily married for 2years now with my very supportive husband, Regie, who scraps with me from time to time.

I cannot say that I have a distinct style since I love experimenting and trying new things as of the moment. I was told that I am good with picking colors for my layout as well as adding so much details to it.

I am most creative on weekdays after work. I work for 10-12hrs a day and scrapping helps me relax before going to bed. I rarely scrap on weekends because I make sure that I dedicate those days with my family.

Any other hobbies besides scrapbooking?

I have a Bachelors Degree in Fine Arts and I'm into painting, computer graphics, and photography.

Describe your style

I do not have a particular style. Being an artist, I prefer to be free and try new thing, painting, doodling, embossing, etc. but upon looking at my previous LOs, I believe that my signature mark is "cutouts"

Messy or organized scrapper?

I am a messy scrapper! When I scrap, I want everything to be around me. The messier the better!!! Makes me feel free. But after finishing a LO or a project, I see to it that I clean everything up and organize my supplies again. For me, the organizing part is a treatment. A time to relax and feel contented.

Favorite color combo.No particular favorite since I use all of them I guess. As long as the colors go well together!

Favorite non-scrap related store to shop at.

Old Navy and Gap for my baby girl

3 Random things about you

I can't live without my MochaFrap from Starbucks, I am a hopeless romantic, I am online 24hrs a day.

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

If you regularly purge your stash, do you find yourself keeping this item because you just never know when you might need it or want it?

Or do you regularly go through your stash and find items that you know you bought for a reason?

Since we all have a decent stash, I'm challenging you to use it! So is the Use Your Stash Challenge blog. You have until the end of June to use some older products on a layout, card or any project for a chance to win. We'll post a thread here asking you to link up pictures of your project and you can link it up there. We'll draw three random winners from the comments and each person will win some Stash Cash!

Start working on them now and look for the announcement to link them up!

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

There are lots of ways to use your scrapbooking supplies to create Home Decor items. The first project that I want to share with you is a wall plaque. You could make yours with any saying but I went with the simple "Home Sweet Home."

1. Paint edges of wood plaque desired color or you can leave the wood plain if you would prefer.

2. Roughly trace plaque onto back of a sheet of patterned paper. Cut out with scissors. Apply a think coat of Mod Podge on top of plaque, adhere your paper. Using an exacto knife gently cut excess paper off. Use the colorbok ink pad to touch up any rough spots and to darken the edges.

3. Cut a 4x6 piece of paper from a scallop patterned paper. Adhere in top left hand corner. Add a floral rubon to the top left hand corner of that piece of paper then adhere the first 2 words of your title using the Pink Paislee Chipboard letters. Add another decorative rubon to the end of the first word.4. Cut 4 strips of patterned paper and 1 out of Bazzill cardstock. Use the Fiskars treading water punch to make a decorative edge along one side of each strip. Adhere these with your tape runner underneath the block of patterned paper, starting with the bottom one first then working your way up. Using the Exacto knife cut the remaing part of the strips off so they are flush with the edge of the plaque. Ink edges with Colorbok chalk ink.

5. Adhere Prima lace above and slightly over the top strip using glue dots. Cut off edge with scissors and adhere edges with more glue dots.

6. Add Pink Paislee leaf chipboard embellishment to top right hand corner. Adhere chipboard house slightly over it adding some pop up glue dots to make it pop out. Apply rub on butterfly, heart, and saying to Bazzill cardstock. Cut out and adhere to house and leaf embellishment adding some Kaiser pearls to the heart and butterfly. Add more Kaiser pearls on one leaf and next to the saying on the house. Adhere a small strip of Maya Road Pom Pom ribbon using glue dots to the bottom of the house embellishment.

7. Adhere the last word of your saying underneath the house embellishment. Tie a small piece of black ribbon on the first letter.8. Add Pink Paislee Tree embellishment tying another small piece of trim to the top, next to the first 2 words of the saying. Apply butterfly rubon to Bazzill cardstock and cut out. Add Kaiser Pearls to the middle and adhere to tree.